I found out that direct sales company Thirty-One, named after the Bible passage in Proverbs 31 that describes a virtuous wife, is closing at the end of the year.  Approximately a decade ago, I sold for a handful of direct sales companies hoping that one would stick and that I had inherited a few of the skills that led to Grandma Reid’s successful 40 year direct sales career.  She only stopped when she could no longer find a quality women’s clothing direct sales company to carry.  In fact, she outlasted several companies, namely Minnesota Woolen, Queensway, and Beeline.  I still happen to have an adorable small stained glass plaque advertising Beeline, bees and all.  I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it.  I had to at least try.

At the time, I tried selling Avon, PartyLite, and of course, Thirty-One.  Handsdown, Thirty-One is the one that captured my heart.  If it hadn’t become so oversaturated, I would probably still be selling it.  Avon needed no introduction and offered high quality products.  The problem became that they ran new catalog campaigns every two weeks.  If you are doing anything else, and I mean anything else, it quickly becomes unsustainable.  PartyLite offered great products too – I had done my homework – but nothing ever stood out as special to me.  As much as I personally loved burning candles, I stopped years ago due to the damage constant candle use can do to walls and ceilings.  Even candle and wax warmers can be extremely messy when you want to change scents.

That left Thirty-One.  By the time I decided to stop carrying PartyLite and Avon, I became undecided with Thirty-One.  I still loved the company and the products.  At the time, I also started substitute teaching several days a week while earning my teaching certificate.  Every single teacher’s lounge contained the latest Thirty-One catalogs, an open party, and the business card of a consultant.  How can you compete against that?  Not easily.  I knew I had to move on, not matter how much I loved and believed in the product.

Speaking of Thirty-One products, I have quite the collection.  After ten years of constant use, most of my items are still in near perfect condition.  I’ll have them for years to come.  I may have spent a chunk of change upfront, but in my case, I have no regrets.  I use them daily.  Thirty-One bags may have been at a fairly high pricepoint, but they were worth the money.  Oh, and adorable too!

Here’s the thing:  Thirty-One knew – and still knows – their audience.  Their bags are functional and stylish.  They targeted busy moms of faith who needed the right tools to haul all the gear everywhere.  Of course, they wanted to look good doing it, too.  No wonder I saw teachers heavily targeted!  In the future, when I look back at the 2010s, Thirty-One bags will certainly be a part of the aesthetic.  In other words, if I were responsible for designing an American Girl doll representing the decade of the 2010s, she would certainly have Thirty-One bags as go-to accessories.  By the way, American Girl absolutely slayed their dolls representing the 80s and 90s, but that is another story entirely.  I could not have done a better job myself.

Sadly, I doubt that there will ever be another Thirty-One.  They knew their target market because it was created by a busy mom on the go for other busy moms of faith.  Whether we like it or not, women carry the mental load in our society – married, single, with or without children; it doesn’t matter.  Women are tasked for making a house a home, remembering all the things for everyone, not to mention organizing life in general.  As a woman and teacher, it is just true, and it is the reason why my Thirty-One bags have come in so damned handy over the years.  If I were still in business school, I’d love to do a case study on Thirty-One to see where it all went wrong. By the way, if you are under the impression that business is dull and boring, think again.